- Bono interviewing Bob in 1984:

Bono: Chess, do you play chess?
Dylan: Yeah, I play chess. Are you a chess player?

Bono: I am a chess player.
Dylan: I'm not that good actually.

Bono: I'll challenge you to a game of chess.
Dylan: I don't have it right now actually, I just don't have one on me, but the next time you see me!

Bono: Oh, you can get these little ones you know, that you can carry around. Dylan: Yeah, I take them on tour all the time, but nobody in the band will play me.

Bono: Really?
Dylan: Yeah, they say it's an ego trip. They say I want to win, I don't want to win, I just like to play.

[...]

Bono: What's your opening game?
Dylan: My opening game, you mean king's pawn up two - and all that? I don't know.

Bono: You just takes it as it comes.
Dylan: Yeah. I don't really play that seriously.

Bono: Well, I thought I did until I played Adam's brother Sebastian - he was only about 13 years old and he beat me!

Dylan: Somebody may have a chess game here.
Bono: I'd love to play.

searching for a chess board ... enter Van Morrison

(Published in the Irish music paper 'Hot Press')
http://www.interferenza.com/bcs/int...

- Playing chess in Woodstock 1964:

http://www.snapgalleries.com/shop/p...

- The Story Of East Orange from "Minnesota Hotel Tape", 1961. (Used to be on Youtube, but removed at the request of Web Sheriff):

<Influenced John Lennon, Bob Dylan>

Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer[1][2] who wrote exclusively in English. In addition to poetry, he wrote short stories and scripts for film and radio, which he often performed himself. His public readings, particularly in America, won him great acclaim; his sonorous voice with a subtle Welsh lilt became almost as famous as his works. His best-known works include the "play for voices" Under Milk Wood and the celebrated villanelle for his dying father, "Do not go gentle into that good night". Appreciative critics have also noted the superb craftsmanship and compression of poems such as "In my Craft or Sullen Art"[3] and the rhapsodic lyricism of "Fern Hill'".

This might remind you of <someone's song lyrics>:

"And death shall have no dominion.
Dead men naked they shall be one
With the man in the wind and the west moon;
When their bones are picked clean and the clean bones gone, They shall have stars at elbow and foot;
Though they go mad they shall be sane,
Though they sink through the sea they shall rise again Though lovers be lost love shall not;
And death shall have no dominion."

I have always appreciated the Times' chess column. I still have clippings from the 1970's in my chess files. The present contributor, Dylan McClain, is a talented master and we are all fortunate that he takes the time to write the column weekly.

But times have changed since the 70's and chess news is widely available on the internet. It often happens that Mr McClain recapitulates without attributation analysis I have already seen elsewhere with proper attributation. In today's column he quotes many lines of analysis exactly as given by GM Alejandro Ramirez at http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail...

I don't know why this bugs me but it does. I think if he quotes someone he should name them just like any other reporter, right? (Or are his submissions being chopped and sanitized by editors above him?)

Naturally, when mistakes occur in games, anyone looking over them later can find the errors and/or come to the same conclusion about what might have happened at critical junctures.

I am not a grandmaster, but I am a fairly strong master and I have been playing for nearly 40 years. My understanding of the subtleties of positions is fairly refined and I believe it has improved in recent years because of the time that I have had to spend looking over and analyzing so many games to write the column. If you look at my rating over the last several years, you will see that it has gone up. I like to believe (though I may be fooling myself) that my rating would be even higher if I could just find more time to play.

I am pointing this out in order to explain why I can come, and have come, to similar conclusions as grandmasters in games that I have written about.

By the way, I also do take the time to credit other people for ideas/information/quotes and take great care not to plagiarize. (I have often cited Chessbase, Chessdom, Chessvibes, and other publications, when I have learned something from them that I have used in the columns.) Sadly, that is not something that all writers do. For example, take a look at my recent column on Aronian's victory at Tata Steel. And then see if you can find another column about his victory that appeared several days later that had several echoes of my ideas and words.

Beenthere240: Normally I tend not to go too deeply into the history of opening developments, partly because of space limitations, and partly because I worry that it will not appeal to a broad enough readership. But your idea is intriguing given Hou Yifan's handling of the opening against Alexei Shirov at Gibraltar (and probably other recent examples). Openings certainly go in and out of favor (something I have written about at least once or twice), but the why might make an interesting column. I'll certainly think about it.

Yes, it is entirely reasonable that different players will reach the same conclusions regarding a game's progress. Just look at the responses to today's (or any day's) Position of the Day. This is especially true with computer assistance available. I felt certain your work was your own and just wanted you to say it.

But I am a scientist (or was before I retired) and we can get very very picky about such things. To quote someone else's work without attributation is about the biggest sin a scientist can commit. Right at the start of my career I almost did this inadvertantly so I am sensitive on the subject.

http://worldchess.com/

Worldchess.com, owned by Agon, is the official Web site of the World Chess Championships.